Agricultural Mechanization Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

A single hidden layer Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model was developed to estimate a machinery
energy ratio (MER) indicator, used to characterize and assess mechanization status of potato farms in
Iran with a view point of energy expenditure in farm machinery. A wide range of variables of farming
activities were examined. Initially, 90 attributes were used as input variables to predict desired MER
output. Using regression analysis, 13 inputs were finally selected to model MER. Performance of
developed ANN model was evaluated with various statistical measures including the coefficient of
determination (R2), mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), mean squared error (MSE) and mean
absolute error (MAE). The optimum ANN model had a 13 - 4 - 1 configuration. The values of the optimum
model’s outputs correlated well, with R2 of 0.98. Value of MAPE calculated as 0.0001 for best ANN
model, which indicate superiority of this model over other prediction models. Sensitivity analyses were
also conducted to investigate the effects of each input item on the output value. Since the ANN model
can predict this mechanization indicator for a target farming system in Hamadan province of Iran, it
could be a good estimator for appraising mechanization of other regional farms. Also it overcomes
some of the limitations of using simple data available from local databases as inputs that may contain
errors.

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- Artificial Neural Networks, Agricultural Mechanization
- by Yalcin Kaya
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- Agricultural Engineering, Agronomy, Plant Ecology, Agribusiness

Ideal puddling and settling period of soil could improve the seedling transplanting performance of the mechanical rice transplanter. This study was conducted to characterize the optimum puddling settling period for various soil textures. The plots were prepared by following all the possible operations to provide a favorable field condition. Each plot was transplanted at eight different times for settling period of 4 to 32 h in clay, sandy clay loam and silty clay loam textured soil. Primarily 76 hills were counted in each plot. Average planting depth was 6 cm while plants per hill were 7 in each field. The transplanting performance of the studied transplanter varied with the soil type and settling period of the soil before transplanting. It was observed that percentage of missing, damage and floating hills were 9.87%, 19.07% and 10.53%, respectively as the maximum values were found in clay soil at 4 h of settling period. With the passes of time, percentages of losses decreased and s...

- by Muhammad Rashed Al Mamun
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- Farm machinery, Agricultural Mechanization
- by Samson ORUMA
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- Agriculture, Sustainable Supply Chain, IEEE, Agricultural Mechanization

Rice seedling for mechanical transplanting must meet the requirements of standard seedling block with uniform distribution of seedlings and inter-twisting roots for rolling. This study was carried out at the Farm Power and Machinery Department, Sylhet Agricultural University, Sylhet during Boro season/2018-19 with the objective of evaluating the different seedling growing media for raising quality mat type rice seedling. Two-ways factorial design with 3 replications was followed to conduct the study. Seedling were raised on plastic tray using two types of soil (sandy clay loam and sandy clay) mixing with four different categories of organic substance (decomposed cow dung, rice bran, rice husk and tea wastage) at the rate of 0.0, 5, 10, 15 and 20%, respectively to get the desired combinations as per treatments. Rolling quality of the seedling mat decreased and fungal infection increased with the increase of mixing rate of organic substance except cow-dung. Sandy clay loam showed better performance on rolling quality of the seedling mat over sandy clay soil. Tea wastage and rice husk organic substance indicated poor bonding of the seedling mat in both type of soils because of restricting the roots growth which loosen the bonding of the tray soil. There was a tendency of crack forming on the sandy clay soil. In general, 10 to 15% of cow-dung or rice bran mixture with both type of soils was found suitable as growing media to get quality seedling in mat for mechanical transplanting. The findings of the study could be promoted widely in farmer's field to raise better quality of mat type seedling for better performance of the mechanical rice transplanter which ultimately led to get better rice yield.

- by Muhammad Rashed Al Mamun and +1
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- Agriculture, Agricultural Mechanization

Mechanized agriculture is the process of using agricultural machinery to work in agriculture field. Mechanization can improve operational efficiency, encourages large scale production developing economics. In Bangladesh agriculture is the major source of livelihood. This study was conducted to assess the livelihood status of farmers following technological development in some selected areas of Hobigonj district, Golapgonj, and SylhetSadarupazila of Sylhet district. The study was based on collection of primary and secondary data. A total of 500 farmers were interviewed from the selected areas. Different categories of farmers were determined. The results show that adapted modern technology 91%, 94%, 92% in SylhetSadar, Golapgonj and Hobigonj respectively. About 64%, 58%, 31% farmers were primary educated in SylhetSadar, Golapgonj and Hobigonj respectively. Farmers housing and sanitation were well enough and 45%, 48%, 69% terraced house in SylhetSadar, Golapgonj and Hobigonj respectively. The study result shows 64%, 52%, 54% farmer was visited upazila health complex in SylhetSadar, Golapgonj and Hobigonj respectively. The value from this demonstration prevail that Farmer bears a great role for developing economic condition of our country.

- by Muhammad Rashed Al Mamun and +1
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- Farm Power and Machinery, Agricultural Mechanization
- by Turi Fileccia
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- Farm Productivity, Agricultural Mechanization

Cuban agriculture, to achieve the sustainability of agricultural systems, needs to initiate a transition process towards conservation agriculture practices; which implies a change in production systems and the technologies they use. Specifically designed machinery is required, capable of operating in untilled soil and with crop residues or cover plants in different forms and situations. In this article, a review of the main innovations to be made in agricultural machinery to be used in a conservation agriculture system in rice agroecosystems is presented.

- by Muhammad Rashed Al Mamun
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- Agronomy, Yield, Texture, Farm machinery

La Meccanica Agraria, inserita nel Settore Concorsuale dell’Ingegneria Agraria, Forestale e dei Biosistemi, da sempre materia multidisciplinare, si caratterizza per l’individuazione di soluzioni tecniche innovative a problematiche tipiche dell’agricoltura meccanizzata e dei mezzi tecnici che concretamente la implementano.
La continua evoluzione della tecnica e l’introduzione di tecnologie sempre nuove pongono una serie di quesiti ai vari attori coinvolti, comportando una riflessione sulla natura della propria figura scientifica e professionale in relazione sia a settori di Aree Universitarie contigue (altre discipline delle Scienze Agrarie e Veterinarie, nonché dell’Ingegneria Industriale e dell’Informazione), sia ad interlocutori di ambiti applicativi interni ed esterni agli Atenei che continuamente si interfacciano tra loro.
Attraverso una quarantina di contributi scientifici, esposti dai relativi Autori in un convegno tenutosi il 23-24 novembre 2017 alla Libera Università di Bolzano, il presente volume cerca di illustrare al lettore la vivacità di questa disciplina, tutt’altro che in declino, testimoniata dall’estrema varietà di interessi di ricerca che caratterizza gli appartenenti.
Nelle intenzioni degli organizzatori e dei partecipanti, il lettore dovrebbe quindi essere in grado di trovare risposte non solo a domande formali come “Cosa rappresenta oggi la Meccanica Agraria nei programmi didattici?”, “È ancora valida la declaratoria ministeriale del settore?”, ma anche ad altri quesiti che rimandano alle vere sfide del futuro, quali “Dove andrà la Meccanica Agraria?”, “Come articolare i contenuti dei suoi insegnamenti nei futuri percorsi di studio universitari?”, “Quali competenze irrinunciabili richiedere ai nuovi discenti del settore?”.
Ben lungi dal pretendere di fornire risposte definitive, il Convegno di Bolzano ha rappresentato un primo momento di sintesi in cui tutti i ricercatori del settore, a tutti i livelli (dai dottorandi di ricerca ai professori ordinari) si sono confrontati apertamente e senza pregiudizi per definire le strategie future e le aspettative della propria disciplina.

Harvesting is one of the most important activities in the post-harvest life of fruits. Pickers are examples of harvesting tools used to increase harvesting capacity and reduce damage brought about by fruit fall and latex stains. Common problems encountered using the conventional picker to the mango fruit were latex stain and fruit fall. This research aimed to reduce the harvesting losses of exportable mangoes due to latex stains, latex burn and fruit fallen. The existing picker (Sigpao) was modified by fabricating additional blades as cutting mechanism during pulling and triggering. There were two types of mango picker designed, the pull type and trigger type. Trigger type was made up of a cutting device controlled by a trigger and the pull type picker was made of a double blade. Based on the results compared with the conventional mango picker having an average capacity of 22 pieces/min, the trigger and pull type registered a capacity of 12 pieces/min and 21 pieces/min respectively. Latex stain reduced by 91.77 % for the trigger type picker and 86.88 % for the pull type picker with insignificant number of fallen and mechanically damaged fruit. When the prototype was subjected to economic cost analysis, results revealed that the marginal benefit cost ratio (MBCR) for pull-type was 4.21 % and 4.12% for trigger type and the marginal return on investment (MROI) were 321% and 312%, respectively. These indicated that the prototype were economically feasible.

- by Roger Montepio and +1
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- Agricultural Mechanization

This study was conducted to determine the production trend, market size and constraints of Agricultural machineries to prepare a database of manufacturers of major Agricultural machineries or equipments locally manufactured in Bangladesh. It identified 307 small and medium enterprises involved in manufacturing of major Agricultural machineries in the country. The list of locally manufactured agricultural machineries are centrifugal pump, hand and foot sprayers, pedal threshers, open-drum and closed drum multi-crop threshers, maize shellers, grain dryers, and spare parts of diesel engines and different machines. This study found that the estimated Market Size of Agricultural-Machinery of Bangladesh is about BDT 282,080.392 million in FY 2011-12. Whereas the estimated market size of spare parts is about BDT 6,000 million besides locally manufactured spare parts market share is about BDT 1500 million in FY 2011-12. The main problems of the Agricultural machinery manufacturing workshops in Bangladesh are lack of skilled mechanic, lack of capital, lack of physical facilities, lack of skilled labor, Bank loan complexity, load shading , insufficient technical support, problem in storage, credit, double taxation, marketing, insufficient use of public media for creating awareness among the farmers, liberal import of foreign machinery and etc.

- by Md. Ashrafuzzaman Gulandaz
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- Agricultural Mechanization

The main experiments were carried out in 2014 at Agricultural Engineering Research Institute (AEnRI), Dokki- Giza to development local extruder machine to produce full fat soybean , and improving Properties that affected full fat soybean quality. The developed machine was operated under three levels of screw types screw profile 1, screw profile 2 and screw profile 3, three levels of clearances between compressing head and compressing head out put cover (1.5, 3 and 5 mm), extruder screw speed of ( 368 and 464 rpm) and Soybean treatment moisture content after moisture adding of ( 20 , 25, 30 and 35%) wb. The obtained results can be summarized as follow:
high productivity 456.43 kg/hr under screw profile 1 at 5 mm clearance between compressing head compressing head out put cover, screw speed 464 rpm and 35% moisture content, low specific mechanical energy 49.51 kW/MG under screw profile 1 at 5 mm clearance between compressing head compressing head out put cover, screw speed 464 rpm and 35% moisture content, high bulk density 0.878 g/cm3 under screw profile 1 at 5 mm clearance between compressing head compressing head out put cover, screw speed 464 rpm and 35% moisture content, high compression head temperature 158.32 C° under screw profile 3 at 1.5 mm clearance between compressing head compressing head out put cover, screw speed 464 rpm and 20 % moisture content, high product temperature 146.65 C° under screw profile 3 at 1.5 mm clearance between compressing head compressing head out put cover, screw speed 368 rpm and 20 % moisture content, high cake oil 19.43 % under screw profile 1 at 5 mm clearance between compressing head compressing head out put cover, screw speed 368 rpm and 35% moisture content, low Urease enzyme 0 U/gm under screw profile 3 at 1.5 mm clearance between compressing head compressing head out put cover, screw speed 464 rpm and 20 % moisture content, high Urease inhibitor efficiency 100 % under screw profile 3 at 1.5 mm clearance between compressing head compressing head out put cover, screw speed 464 rpm and 20 % moisture content, high effect of temperature on Urease enzyme when, increasing screw profiles from 1, 2 to 3 profile increased temperature from 125.83, 135.3 to 147.5 C°, but Urease enzyme decreasing 1.16, 0.69 to 0.06 U/gm, respectively, at clearance compression head 3 mm and low operational cost 3508.1 LE/MG under screw profile 1 at 5 mm clearance between compressing head compressing head out put cover, screw speed 464 rpm and 35 % moisture content.

The study reports the results of development and performance of pneumatic precision planter to get desired seed spacing and seed rate at real field condition. Computational fluid dynamic software tool was used to optimize design and operational parameters of pneumatic seed metering mechanism. Vacuum pressure and cell diameter were simulated for cotton seeds through ICEM CFD software and precision pneumatic seed planter was developed. Aerodynamic properties like maximum terminal velocity and drag coefficient of cotton seed were found to be 8.91ms-1 and 0.63, respectively. Analytically it was proved that, the suction pressure is directly proportional to seed density, geometric mean diameter, square of air flow rate and inversely proportional to distance between seed position and cell. Reynolds number was determined and found that air flow is turbulent, hence Navier - Stokes equations were solved using standard k-ε turbulence model. Results of simulation showed that optimum vacuum pressure, rotor speed and cell diameter for cotton were 2.72 kPa, 0.81 ms-1 and 2.66 mm, respectively for third seed metering model (SMM3). The predicted responses of miss index, multiple index and precision index were 6.76, 3.89 and 10.81 percent, respectively with combined desirability of 0.88 for the SMM3 model. The optimum vacuum pressure and cell diameters were derived from simulation study and a cotton precision planter was developed considering additional factor of safety to overcome tractor vibration and air leakage of mechanical components of seed metering mechanism. The simulation results were validated by testing developed metering unit under lab setup using instrumented test rig and was also evaluated for cotton planting under actual field conditions.

This paper presents the applications and status of the renewable energy technologies in Bangladesh. The information presented are taken from both primary and secondary sources. Technical aspects of solar home systems (SHS) and biogas plants were studied at the premises of the user farmers and financial analysis has been done based on collected data. various publications and from websites of the relevant agencies. About 38% of the Bangladeshi population has access to electricity. Nearly 75% of the population is rural and only about 30% of the rural households have access to grid electricity. The remote and isolated rural areas are not often feasible for conventional grid-based electrification due to high investment and running costs. To accomplish the GoB’s stated goal of providing universal electricity access by 2020, the GoB has encouraged implementing off-grid renewable energy technologies, such as solar home systems, biogas power and micro-wind power systems in coastal areas, and micro-hydro projects in the mountainous regions as a priority. R&D activities on RETs have started in 70s and gained momentum during the present decade. With financial supports from a number of donor agencies, several Govt and non-Govt organizations have gained appreciable expertise and business skills for installation and dissemination of RETs in off-grid remote areas. The use of solar PV systems for lighting and power; biogas for lighting, cooking and power generation; wind and water turbines for power generation have substantially improved the socio-economic conditions of the rural households and communities, enhanced business of small enterprises, improved health services of the rural clinics, improved education of the children, enhanced IT activities in rural areas and finally improved the lifestyle of the rural people. Financial analysis of the SHS and the biogas plant indicates that capital investment for these technologies is beneficial. Increasing price of kerosene, diesel and other conventional energy sources has made solar and biogas technology as attractive alternatives for many rural households.

Rice is becoming increasingly an important crop in Ethiopia. Owed to the post harvest losses, evaluation and
demonstration of an imported pedal thresher was conducted. In addition, a proto type was developed using reverse engineering.
Data was collected using structured data sheet and analyzed using descriptive statistics and parametric tests. Duncan and Tukey
mean tests showed the absence of significant mean threshing output difference between the pedal type (127.5kg/hr) and the
modified (120kg/hr) one. The result showed statistically different threshing output using these technologies as compared to the
traditional method (92kg/hr). The financial analysis showed that an average Fogera farmer (0.35ha rice land) could thresh his
annual rice yield within 9.25hrs and 8.68hrs using modified and pedal threshers with a cost reduction of ETB 320.58 compared
to the traditional system. The low awareness of the farmers on the consequences and advantages of threshing on quality of rice
and subsequently on preference and marketing resulted in low priority for adoption. Hence, large scale awareness creation
activities should be done and the technology ought to be promoted widely in order to contribute for the government’s aim as a
millennium crop and benefit from the market opportunity reassuring in the country.

- by Dagnnet Amare and +1
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- Agricultural Mechanization

More than 70% of the working adult population of Nigeria is employed in the agricultural
sector directly and indirectly. Over 90% of Nigeria's agricultural output comes from peasant
farmers who dwell in the rural areas where 60% of the population live. The vast majority of
these farmers has limited access to modern inputs and other productive resources and is
unlikely to have access to pesticides, fertilizers, hybrid seeds and irrigation. The successful
development of farm mechanization is determined primarily by the transition process from
manual tools through animal-drawn implements and finally to the application of mechanical
power technologies, which will improve efficiency time, labour and productivity of peasant
farmers and thereby enhance food security of a Nigeria. This study investigates constraints to
agricultural mechanization in Irepodun Local Government Area (LGA), Kwara State, Nigeria.
This study employed a multi stage sampling techniques to collect information on the socioeconomic
characteristics, agricultural machines available and equipment used for specific farm
operations. Analysis revealed that farmers in the study area are middle-aged and are relatively
uneducated. Most of the farm sizes in the study area range from 1-5 ha and many of the farm
operations were carried out manually; land clearing (93%), tillage (83%), planting (88.54%),
fertilizer application (97.5%), weeding (98.7%) and harvesting (97.5%). This study also shows
that majority of respondents were smallholder farmers who are often too poor to employ
modern tools, such as tractors and plows even though over 80% of the foods consumed in this
country come from these peasant farmers in rural areas. This confirms that agricultural
mechanization is still beyond the reach of the peasant farmers in rural areas

- by TIMOTHY ADEKANYE
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- Agricultural Mechanization

A software was designed and developed in Borland Delphi for Farm Machinery and Management (Agricultural Mechanization)

Tractor wheel slippage is a critical parameter for fuel consumption and field performance and
should not exceed 15%. Several attempts have been made to study the wheel slippage of the
agricultural tractor in order to minimize it to acceptable levels during the tillage operations. There
are many different types of implements for soil tillage, each one of them affects the wheel slippage
in a different way. Moreover, several studies have found many operating conditions that can affect
the wheel slippage significantly such as: soil moisture content, tillage speed, ballast weights and
the type of implement used for tillage. This article reviews the relationship between them which
gives possibility for further research to focus on the potential solutions to decrease the tractor
driving wheel slippage which can positively affect the fuel consumption. Increase the additional
mass of the tractor, decrease the air pressure in the tires, avoid tilling the soil that is too wet or too
dry and, choose the right implement, speed and depth can decrease the tractor driving wheel
slippage.

- by Amer Mamkagh
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- Agricultural Mechanization

The challenge of Nigeria's food insecurity in the era of the Covid-19 pandemic, insecurity, climate change, population growth, food wastage, etc., is a demanding task. This study addresses Nigeria's food insecurity challenges by adopting agriculture 4.0 and commercial farming. Using data from six digital libraries, the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics, and other internet sources, we conducted a Systematic Literature Review (SLR using PRISMA) on Nigeria's agriculture, food security, and agriculture 4.0. Our results show Nigeria's current agricultural state, threats to food security, and modern digital agriculture technologies. We adapted our SLR findings to develop an implementation framework for agriculture 4.0 in solving Nigeria's food insecurity challenge in the post-Covid-19 era. Our proposed framework integrates precision agriculture in Nigeria's food production and the necessary enabling digital technologies in the agri-food supply chain. We analyzed the critical implementation considerations during each agri-food supply chain stage of farming inputs, farming scale, farming approach, farming operation, food processing, food preservation/storage, distribution/logistics, and the final consumers. This study will help researchers, investors, and the government address food security in Nigeria. The implementation of agriculture 4.0 will substantially contribute to SDG 2 (zero hunger), SDG 3 (good health and well-being), and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth) of #Envision 2030 of the United Nations, for the benefit of Nigeria, Africa, and the entire world.

- by Samson ORUMA and +1
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- Sustainable Supply Chain, Supply Chain Management & Logistics, Agricultural Mechanization, Agrifood

This study assessed the roles and challenges of key players in promoting agricultural mechanization in Nigeria. Specifically, it describes the characteristics of key players, discussed their roles, and identified their challenges in promoting agricmechanization. The players (Government, development partners, tractor dealers, fabricators, association, tractor hiring service providers, tractor operators, farmers using agri-machines) were selected across Kaduna, Nasarawa, Niger, Lagos, and FCT. Checklist was used in an in-depth interview and focus group discussion to elicit relevant information which was analyzed qualitatively. Key informant interview was conducted using telephone. Various models of tractor-hiring operations were identified. Critical issues to be solved in the promotion of agri-mechanization include accessibility to loan, promotion of scheduled maintenance for machines, and curtailing the excesses of tractor operators through the use of tracking device. Identified major challenges of key payers include… It is recommended that local production of machines and equipments should be stimulated by the Government. More so, group ownership of agri-machines should be encouraged (through creation of awareness, regular training and monitoring by extension agencies) to emulate the TOHFAN example in tractor-hiring management. Models and operational strategies used by TOHAN (especially the tracking device) can be adapted by the public tractorhiring services in order to ensure effective tractor-hiring management in Nigeria.

- by Fadlullah ISSA
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- Agricultural Mechanization

Tillage is a very important practice in agriculture in many countries and accounts for more traction energy than any other field operation. Tillage operation consumes up to 59% of all diesel fuel required for the complete technology so reduced tractor fuel consumption during tillage will result in both environmental and agricultural economic benefits. Several attempts have been made to study the fuel consumption of the agricultural tractor in order to minimize it to acceptable levels during the tillage operations. Some factors like tillage speed, depth, ballast weight and tires inflation pressure of the tractor can affect the tractor fuel consumption. This article reviews these factors to give possibility for further research to focus on the potential solutions to decrease the fuel consumption of the agricultural tractors.

The low population density in West Kalimantan indicated that this province had a high need for agricultural machinery. However, the application of technology on agricultural machinery was not enough to anticipate the problems of agricultural development but had to be supported by a suitable institution. In relation to these matters, institution in form of a group corporation on services for agricultural machinery (UPJA) had been developed in West Kalimantan. Currently, it was reported that 358 unit of UPJA available in this province, spread over 9 districts but only 44% of those were active. Wetland rice and corn were the two main commodities supported by UPJA. There were 7 type of agricultural machinery own by UPJA, i.e. hand tractor, power thresher, water pump, reaper, trans-planter, dryer and Rice Milling Unit (RMU). The numbers of agricultural machinery that currently available for wetland rice was much lower than the demand. Type of machinery that were reported to be moderately high in availability were RMU (45%) and water pump (21%), while others ranged from 0.1 % (transplanter) to 8.1% (power thresher). There were 3 models of institution for agricultural machinery, i.e. a) Government, b) Sanggau and c) Ketapang. Based on the total net margin and the rate of credit returned, it was shown that the performance of Sanggau and Ketapang models were better than a model of government. In case of Sanggau model, this was closely related to the high participation of the members in controlling the management through the existence of UPJA association both in district and sub-district levels. Meanwhile, Ketapang model characterized by working contract made between manager and operator ensured the high rate of payback for the credit given. Based on these facts, the suitable UPJA institution that may developed in West Kalimantan have to fulfill the aspects of transparency, participatory, efficiency and effectively applied. Therefore, a combination of Sanggau and Ketapang models that characterized by the existence of association as the highest authority in UPJA supported with the contract system may fulfill the type of ideal UPJA model for this province.

This paper presents the study reports on evaluating a new transplanting operation by taking into accounts the interactions between soil, plant, and machine in line with the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) practices. The objective was to modify planting claw (kuku-kambing) of a paddy transplanter in compliance with SRI guidelines to determine the best planting spacing (S), seed rate (G) and planting pattern that results in a maximum number of seedling, tillers per hill, and yield. Two separate experiments were carried out in two different paddy fields, one to determine the best planting spacing (S=4 levels: s1=0.16 m×0.3 m, s2= 0.18 m×0.3 m, s3=0.21 m×0.3 m, and s4=0.24 m×0.3 m) for a specific planting pattern (row mat or scattered planting pattern), and the other to determine the best combination of spacing with seed rate treatments (G=2 levels: g1=75 g/tray, and g2= 240 g/tray). Main SRI management practices such as soil characteristics of the sites, planting depth, missing hill, hill population, the number of seedling per hill, and yield components were evaluated. Results of two-way analysis of variance with three replications showed that spacing, planting pattern and seed rate affected the number of one-seedling in all experiment. It was also observed that the increase in spacing resulted in more tillers and more panicle per plant, however hill population and sterility ratio increased with the decrease in spacing. While the maximum number of panicles were resulted from scattered planting at s4=0.24 m×0.3 m spacing with the seed rate of g1=75 g/tray, the maximum number of one seedling were observed at s4=0.16 m×0.3 m. The highest and lowest yields were obtained from 75 g seeds per tray scattered and 70 g seeds per tray scattered treatment respectively. For all treatments, the result clearly indicates an increase in yield with an increase in spacing.

Although tractors have long been regarded by policy makers in Bangladesh as being technologically 'inappropriate' to local conditions, they have nevertheless been in use in Comilla district for several decades. The failure of cooperative institutional arrangements for farm mechanization in the 1960s has stimulated local rural entrepreneurs to establish their own custom ploughing arrangements. This is a response to a continuing draught power shortage and the needs of farmers to achieve a swift turnaround time between harvesting rain-fed paddy and planting the increasingly profitable potato crop. This type of arrangement forms part of wider entrepreneurial service delivery systems which are becoming increasingly important in rural Bangladesh, where small-scale agriculture interacts with 'lumpy' technological inputs.

Mechanization plays a significant role in modern agriculture. The decreasing number of labor and increasing population makes agricultural production harder. So mechanization is needed to cope up with this situation. This study was conducted to identify major drawback behind mechanization of Bangladesh. The study was a surveyed analysis and conducted in 8 villages in Sylhet, Cumilla and Gaibandha district in 2017-2018. The result shows that 95.71%, 100%, 85.71%, 78.58%, 71.42%, 92.85%, 97.14% farmers were thinking that fragmented land, high machinery price, lack of maintenance, inadequate extension service, poor transportation, lack of loan service and big machinery size is the main drawback for mechanization respectively. The result also shows that farmers' financial, social and cropping system condition does not suit properly. The current study was found that a healthy agricultural mechanization policy must be formulated immediately including machine development and manufacturing, quality protection by standardization of machines, skill development of researchers, farmers, mechanics and machine operators and marketing system improvement. In this study, a theoretical model was recommended for resolving these problems. It is recommended that government should set up agricultural machinery industries which should be developed or purchase and hired out to small-scale farmers at a subsidized rate to increase the level of mechanization of certain farm operations in the middle belt states of the country. If the production process can be stimulated by modern farming techniques and mechanical aids the goal of sustainable agriculture can be achieved and ensure food security.

The pulling flax machine was developed and constructed to simulate the manual pulling process to minimize the capsule and stalk losses under Egyptian conditions. The developed machine was operated under different forward speeds of 1.44, 2.16, 2.63 and 4.50 km/h (0.40 , 0.60, 0.73 and 1.25 m/s), finger rotating speeds of 150, 200, 250 and 320 rpm (0.42, 0.57, 0.71 and 0.91 m/s) and soil moisture contents of 29.24, 21.96, 18.35 and 15.75 %.(w.d) The obtained results can be summarized as follow:
The highest value of pulling efficiency of 93.30% was obtained at soil moisture content of 21.96%, finger rotating speed of 250 rpm and machine forward speed of 2.16 km/h. The highest value of effective field capacity of 0.860 fed/h was obtained at soil moisture content of 21.96%, forward speed of 4.50 km/h and finger rotating speed of 250 rpm. While the forward speed of 1.44 km/h and finger speed of 150 rpm gave the lowest value of effective field capacity of 0.184 fed/h. The highest value of field efficiency of 90.32% was recorded at soil moisture content of 21.96%, using machine forward speed of 1.44 km/h and finger rotating speed of 250 rpm. The lowest value of fuel consumption rate of 2.62 l/h was recorded at machine forward speed of 4.50 km/h, finger rotating speed of 150 rpm and soil moisture content of 21.96%. The minimum power required of 8.30 kW was obtained at machine forward speed of 4.50 km/h, finger rotating speed of 150 rpm, soil moisture content of 21.96%. The minimum energy consumed of 14.0 kW.h/fed was obtained at machine forward speed of 4.50 km/h, finger rotating speed of 150 rpm and soil moisture content of 21.96%. The lowest value of total pulling cost of 163.7 L.E/fed was recorded at machine forward speed of 2.16 km/h, finger rotating speed of 250 rpm and soil moisture content of 21.96%.

A methodological approach for evaluating a priori the stability of agricultural vehicles equipped with different mounted implements and operating on sloping hillsides is shown here. It uses a Matlab simulator in its first phase and, subsequently, the Response Surface Modelling (RSM) to evaluate the coefficients of a set of regression equations able to account for the Type-I and Type-II stability of the whole vehicle (tractor + implement with known dimensions and mass). The regression equations can give reliable punctual numeric estimations of the minimum value of the Roll Stability Index (RSI) and can verify the existence of a Type-I equilibrium without the need of using the simulator or knowing any detail about the model implemented in it. The same equations can also be used to generate many intuitive graphs (“equilibrium maps”) useful to verify quickly the possible overturning of the vehicle. A case-study concerning a 4-wheel drive articulated tractor is then presented to show the...

Iranian agricultural mechanization continues to experience a lack of expert management. The objective of this study was to
estimate farming power and the inventory of agricultural equipment at the farming household level, and to present the current status of Iranian manufacturing, sales, and services and also the constraints and opportunities for improvement, particularly in agricultural mechanization and production. There are two main farming systems in Iran; irrigated and rain fed. The main
crops produced are wheat, oats, peas, alfalfa, and rice. There are three types of farming power namely, human, animal and
motorized. For agriculture mechanization development, the government must support more research and development
opportunities, hire qualified youth and willing graduates and increase international cooperation. Greenhouse automation
should be considered. Increased financing of agricultural machinery manufacturing is also necessary along with the
distribution of tractor power based on regional, technical needs. A program of expansion and education should be also
developed. Government policy that hinders development in rural areas at the expense of the migration of human resources must be avoided.

- by Alireza Keyhani
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- Renewable Energy, Sustainable agriculture, Smart Grid, Microgrid
- by Yared Deribe and +1
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- Farm Power and Machinery, Farm Machinery and Mechanization, Agricultural Mechanization, Farm Labor
- by Harley Silva and +1
- •
- Urbanization, Minas Gerais, Agricultural Mechanization
- by Steven "Boot" Chumbley
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- Agricultural Mechanization

The level of agricultural mechanization in Cameroon for the past decades has faced an improvement though not significant and despite repeated attempts of the government to improve the sector. One of these attempts was the recent distribution of SONALIKA brand tractors of different horse power (DI 60, DI 75, DI 90) to farm operators in order to improve the level of farm mechanization. Unfortunately, a certain number of these tractors (30%) were found abandoned after a short period of time in the field due to numerous constraints such as the lack of proper training of drivers, the scarcity of spare parts, the poor quality of the machine and the poor land preparation, just to name a few. This study seeks to contribute to the improvement of the shelf life of SONALIKA tractors in the five Agro-ecological zones of Cameroon by identifying and prioritizing the primary causes (hardware link or software link) of tractor breakdown and proposing solutions to main faults on the hardware and software components. Questionnaires were administered to respondents (tractor operators and mechanics) and data collected was analysed using SPSS and Microsoft office excel. Interviews were carried out to get root causes of breakdown then prioritized using Pareto chart. Organization of root causes was done using ISHIKAWA diagram. Results revealed five primary factors; (Material, Machine, Manpower, Method and Environment) responsible for the operational weaknesses of SONALIKA tractors. Prioritizing of these factors showed that there are three vital few factors (Manpower, Machine and Environment) which if tackled could solve 90 % of the problems of premature failure of tractors and thus avoiding the perpetuation of the existing situation.

This policy note reviewed the status of farm machinery in the Kyrgyz Republic. Agricultural productivity, particularly in terms of grain yields, is low because of underinvestment. This note finds that a significant deficit in agricultural machinery is hindering sector productivity. The Kyrgyz Republic has fewer tractors per hectare than any comparable country, with a deficit estimated at 40 percent. The deficit of combine harvesters, estimated at 45 percent, is even more critical. When the age of agricultural machinery is taken into account, the underinvestment becomes even more acute. The reduced domestic production of wheat exacerbates food security concerns. Inadequate access to credit and small farm size are the main factors that constrain farm mechanization. The policy note presents three sets of short- to medium-term policy options to: i) promote the demand for farm machinery, by developing credit lines for agricultural productive assets, leasing, facilitating access to second...

- by Turi Fileccia
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- Business, Agribusiness, Capital Markets, Cooperatives

Agricultural mechanization refers to interjection of improved tools, implements and machines between farm workers and materials handled by them. Independent India ushered in a process of agricultural mechanization and revival of rural agroprocessing which got acceleration during post-Green Revolution period. Irrigation pump sets, power threshers, tractors, power tillers and matching implements,including for 65Million draft animals have became popular. Seed and seed-cumfertilizer drills, planters, mechanical rice transplanters, vertical conveyor reapers, and combines soon followed. In the recent past, Zero-till Drill and Raise Bed Planters have found good acceptance from the farmers. Currently mechanization is in increasing demand. Farmers and policy makers and developmental agencies now realise that for increasing production and productivity at reduced unit cost of production, free of arduous labour, agricultural mechanization is essential. It is brought in centre stage with globalization of world markets. Introduction of electromechanical power units supplementing and substituting traditional animate sources of farm power is going to continue. Shifts in agriculture leading to crop diversification towards horticulture, animal husbandry fishery, forestry and on-farm agro-processing are going to bring in greater degree of mechanization. India dominated by small and marginal land holdings may not have same trend of mechanization as the developed world but it is going to grow close to it with its own variant as labour wages go up and WTO Competition compels us to keep reducing unit costs of production, processing, packaging, and retail and situations demanding provision of custom servicing, custom agro-processing and acceptable standards of living.

The experiment was carried out at Agriculture Collage - University of Tikrit during the agricultural winter season 2009 in Gypsfreous soil .Three plowing speeds included 2.5, 4.5 and 6.5 km /h with three cover height angles of rotary plow included 25, 45 and 65 degree to evaluate its effect on some Gypsfreous soil physical properties included bulk density, porosity , percentage of soil clods which diameters are less than 5 cm / m2 and Soil penetration resistance in this study. Complete randomized block design (RCBD) with three replications was used in this experiment and Duncan was used to comparison the mean of treatments.
The results obtained reveals that plowing speed 2.5 km /h bulk density reduction and gave the largest porosity and gave soil penetration resistance reduction and Percentage of soil clods increased. While gave cover height angle 65° less bulk density and largest porosity . The cover height angle 25° gave largest percentage of soil clods and less soil penetration resistance .
The results obtained reveals that first plowing speed 2.5 km /h with cover height angle 65° gave less bulk density and largest porosity. While, the plowing speed 2.5 km /h with cover height angle 25° gave largest percentage of soil clods and less Soil penetration resistance.

- by Momtaz Isaak
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- Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Mechanization

An artificial neural network (ANN) model was developed to assess mechanization status of potato farms in Iran. Mechanization index
(MI) and level of mechanization (LOM) were used to characterize farming system of potato production in the region. To develop ANN
model, data were obtained from farmers, government officials as well as from relevant databases. A wide range of explanatory parameters
of farming activities were examined. Finally, 19 explanatory parameters were used as input variables to predict MI and LOM. Based on
performance measures, single hidden layers with 8 and 3 neurons in the hidden layer were finally selected as the best configuration for
predicting MI and LOM, respectively. For the optimal ANN models, the values of the model’s outputs correlated well with actual outputs,
with coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.98 and 0.99 for MI and LOM, respectively. Sensitivity analyses were also conducted to
investigate the effects of various explanatory parameters on the outputs. Since the ANN model can predict the two mechanization
indicators for a target farming system with high accuracy, it could be a good alternative to regression for assessing agricultural
mechanization of regional farms with similar conditions.

In this study, the germinated sesame seeds were planted using the fluid drilling technique and this technique was compared with other ones from the point of the effects on plant emergence from the soil. The experiments were carried out in the experimental field of the department of Agricultural Machinery Faculty of Agriculture at Ege University. Split – Split – Plot type of experiment was investigated under different soil conditions. Different soil conditions in this study were obtained by using different soil types and moisture contents. The moisture content of the soil was provided by irrigation. The main plot for each soil type was divided into three sub plots. The each of these three sub plots with different soil moisture content (dry, low moisture and moistured) was then divided into plots in order to apply dry, wet and germinated planting techniques. The experiments were triplicated. The results obtained from the experiments were then analyzed statistically by Totemstat Statistic Pocket Programme in order to compare the differences in the percent of plant emergence, period of emergence and the growth of sesame plants. The studies conducted on planting technique of germinated seedes were usually on vegetables. Some studies using this technique were also achieved for flowers, grass and cereals. But as known from the literature there is no study using sesame seeds. It is believed this is the first one. Germinating power of sesame seeds is high but because of the small seed size emergence power is low. From the study, it was concluded that the emergence ratio increased and plant growth was beter when the sesame seeds were pre-germinated and then planted.

- by ÖMER ERTUĞRUL
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- Agricultural Engineering, Agriculture, Seed germination, Biosystems engineering

In this study, seed flow rate, seed flow evenness and in-row seed distribution uniformity of top delivery normal type straight fluted roller were examined in the laboratory experiments for the random seeding of uncoated onion, carrot, canola and coated canola seeds. The regression models developed in this study included the seed flow rate changes with “large scale fluted roller's”, active flute length, rates of revolution. Generally, seed flow evenness of normal top delivery type fluted roller indicated as a value of coefficient of variation (CV) was found below 4% for onion, carrot and canola seeds. When the sticky belt test results were examined from the point of λ goodness criteria and Vf factor of variation, it was found that seeding unit with top delivery type straight fluted roller considered in the study was
capable of sowing of uncoated onion and carrot seeds at “middle” quality , and coated and uncoated canola seeds at “good” quality”.

- by Đsmet Önal and +1
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- Agricultural Engineering, Agriculture, Allium Cepa, Uniformity